Brampton Bed & Breakfast Inn

Elite '09

17

118

Megan R.

Dumont, NJ

4/12/2008

I have stayed in many rooms in this inn over the past ten years.  

The owners are absolutely wonderful.

The food includes the best cookies with afternoon tea, and an unbelievable breakfast.

The inn is the most amazing get away, I don't think my opinion of the town would be helpful since I have loved it since day one of my freshman year at Washington College.

This is the perfect place to disappear for a romantic weekend.

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2

189

Bradley N.

Woodside, CA

9/15/2009

This is such an amazing B&B that I decided to devote my 100th Yelp review to singing its praises. The setting is rural, serene, and scenic, minutes from Chestertown and the Chesapeake Bay yet miles away from everything that would remind you of urban or (even worse) suburban life. The inn is historic, and it shows, but it's a working place that is well-loved and gorgeously maintained. This is no secret, since B&B guidebooks and newspaper cover stories in places like the Washington Post and NY Times have rated it highly. But reading these reviews cannot replace the actual experience of staying here for a night or two. It hits all the right B&B buttons and then some. When we stayed in early fall, the morning light was enchanting and the nights were made for sitting on the porch savoring the cool breezes. The common rooms, dining room, and bedrooms are all elegant and tasteful, while the grounds practically beg to be explored. There is no other place like this on the Eastern Shore.

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2

20

A D.

Washington, DC

2/19/2008

My wife treated me to two nights at this absolutely wonderful B&B on Maryland's eastern shore.  We had a blast reading, driving around the countryside and hanging out in the bookstore and cafe in downtown Chestertown.  Chestertown is an 18th C river town that has maintained most of its original architecture.  It's the kind of place people call "charming".  I'll grant you that's not always a good thing, and I'll bet in summer or early spring the place gets over run with tourists, but since it was winter and pretty cold the cloying sweet-tea quality was minimal.

Note that there are good restaurants in the town, but some of them (Blue Heron, for example) are pretty expensive.  You can, however, find some pubs with good greasy victuals.

Rooms:  You have a choice of rooms/suites/or detached apartments.  Prices vary accordingly.  We stayed in the "Yellow Room" in the main house.  The house was built in 1860, so the floorboards creak and the door was difficult to lock, but this really only adds to the "authentic antebellum" experience of the place (I suppose).  And I don't mean to say there is any kind of Gothic decrepitude.  This is decidedly not the house of Thomas Sutpen.  Everything is clean, well appointed, and the bathroom furnishings are brand-spanking new.  In fact, our tub had a whirlpool function!  

All rooms have a working fireplace.  And each day the proprietor rebuilds your fire for you--that is, he stacks the newspaper, kindling, and wood in your fireplace for you.  All you need to do in the evening is touch a match to the newspaper and away you go.  It's amazing how perfectly the fires flare up: no blowing, prodding, praying, etc.  And you don't have to feed it more paper to get the blaze roaring.  I guess after building fires for 20 years, the owners have figured out how to do it.  And you have enough extra wood in your room to keep the fire going for a long time.  For me, this was the best thing about being at the Inn.

There are several communal rooms.  One is the back parlor.  There you will find the bottomless cookie jars, the sherry decanter (take a glass up to your room to enjoy by the fire), and "early coffee"--i.e. coffee to drink if you get up before breakfast is served.  There is a front parlor as well.  This has a fireplace, a library, and an array of board games.  And finally there is the dining area where you'll be twice each day.  Once for breakfast, and once for an afternoon tea.

Breakfast:  Served from 8:30-10:00.  Each morning starts with a bowl of fresh fruit and fresh baked sweet bread (scones, muffins), coffee, and juice.  This will be followed by your choice of some kind of omelet, pancakes/waffles, and always a side of some sort of sliced pig.  Wonderful!  The breakfasts are ample and if you eat late enough, you probably won't need to eat lunch.  Scrumptious.

The afternoon tea is a great touch.  In addition to a wide selection of teas, there are also sweet and savory snacks to enjoy.

I guarantee you'll find it hard to leave this place once you've spent a couple of nights there.  For those of you who feel vacation should have the rigors of your work life, then this isn't for you.  But if you are looking to escape from the world a bit, stick your head in a book, wander through little coastal towns, and so forth, then I recommend this place.

Please note that we went in February.  So we were keen to hole up in front of the fire, in the whirlpool, or at the cafe in town.  As the seasons change, I would guess the prevailing spirit of the Inn does as well.   In summer I know that some people use the Inn as a base for kayaking trips.  Ask the owners about this since I think they can help arrange trips.

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2

24

Scottie B.

Princeton, NJ

2/10/2009

Wow.  We stayed a couple nights at Brampton Inn and enjoyed every minute there.  They had a 20% discount in February, so we decided to upgrade to one of the suites.  It was nice having a room in a separate building from the main house, but near enough to pleasantly stroll outside to get to breakfast (the weather was unseasonably warm).  Breakfast was, as advertised, amazing.  The personal attention was at the right level too, enough to make you feel welcome and cared for but not so much to be smothered.  Our room was quite incredible: whirlpool tub, amazing shower, comfortable king bed, and the fires always ready-to-light with a single match.  There are plenty of places to eat at in town, and most seem to have a laidback dress code (good since I left some luggage at home).  Be forewarned though: places close early compared to the city and most things are closed on Sundays, we spent a good two hours hunting for a vegetarian-friendly restaurant to have lunch at before we left and ended up at a Chinese take-out place (ok, we also spent a lot of the time just strolling through the cute town and river walk).  The inn itself is on cute grounds, good for a short stroll.  If the clouds are right, you can head to the pasture and stargaze a bit.  If you're a runner, there's some nice, flat farmland all around that was great for taking a jog at.  Just be done in time for breakfast!  And how can I forget tea time with amazing pies and the always available homemade marshmallows and cookies!

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